Lewis Shares His Love for the Arts

Spending the summer touring New Mexico and southern Colorado as
an actor and director for a youth theatre organization isn’t
the typical job for a college physics major who will likely be joining the workforce
as an engineer.

Paul Lewis, however, can’t be pinned down by a single
label. A rising senior at Albion College, Lewis minors in philosophy, plays the bass trombone in the jazz
band, performs on stage—he starred in one of the lead
roles in the College’s 2011 production of Once on This
Island—and competes in cross country, track and field,
and diving. He is a two-time qualifier for the NCAA Division III
Cross Country Championship as well as a three-time all-Michigan
Intercollegiate Athletic Association performer on the trail.

Lewis is sharing his love of the arts with school-age children
while touring with the Missoula (Mont.) Children’s Theatre
for a production of The Tortoise and the Hare this summer.
Joined by a partner from MCT, Lewis arrives in a city each Sunday
in a truck packed with all the supplies needed for the full-scale
theatrical presentation. The pair from MCT selects the
cast—optimally 58 kids, but there is room for 65—and
begins rehearsals on Monday with the culmination being the show on
Saturday.

“I like physics a lot, but the arts are my true
love,” Lewis said. “I like being able to express
myself. I feel free doing anything artistic. I don’t get that
opportunity doing much else.

“[A summer job with MCT] never appeared on my
radar,” Lewis added. “It’s a fun job because I
love kids, acting
and to travel. It is great to see a different landscape and
culture.”

Being able to participate in three varsity sports as well as
other extracurricular activities is a key factor in why Lewis chose
to attend Albion.

“I was almost dead set on going to Michigan State, and
when I told them all of the things I wanted to do on top of
running—like diving, swimming, acting, traveling
abroad—the coaches basically told me I would have to redshirt
and take a year off,” Lewis said.

“Then I presented [cross country coach] Hayden Smith with
the same scenario and he said it was fine.”

When Lewis does have some downtime, he can be found playing
Nintendo 64 or watching The Cosby Show on Netflix. But in
truth, running is what gives Lewis his real break from his
responsibilities.

“You don’t have to think about anything, or worry
about anything,” he said, perking up a bit. “You are
just out there.”

Lewis will return to Albion just ahead of the cross country
team’s training camp for the 2013 season. In addition to the
MIAA meets—the jamboree is scheduled for Sept. 28 at Adrian
and the championship Nov. 2 in Holland—the Britons will take
an October trip to California for a meet at Cal State San
Marcos.

Photograph: Paul Lewis (right) starred as one of the leads
in the 2011 College production of Once on This Island.